Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
I 9
J-CLIP MOUNTING SYSTEM FOR LOAD BEARING SEAT MEMBERS
l BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to the field of
seating and more particularly to seat assemblies for use
in vehicles such a automobiles and the like. In the past,
5 most automobile stating involved the use of foam end Rome
type of metal springs. The primary function of the springs
was to provide added structural up pot During quick
loading of the teat or during long-term continuous use of
the seat, the seat occupant could feel the springs which
10 thus became a source of discomfort.
More recently, seat assumably have been developed
in which the load bearing seat member is a web or sheet
of material that can be tensioned and which functions as
a support member encapsulated within a foam body. The web
15 or sheet is preferably a matrix of fibrous material which
is attached to eke frame and operates like a network of
filaments, a di~closcd in cope ding application Serial
No. 435,801 wiled August 31, 1983 in Canada
end assigned to the assignee of this application.
The present invention provides improved structure
for mounting load bearing webs or sheets on the teat frame.
Past methods ox attaching spring support stems to the
frame have necessitated discrete attachment location and
are thus not adaptable to R system or mounting web on a
25 frame. These spring support ~y8t~m8 are inconsistent with
the goal in a web mounting of uniform load distribution, and
Gould result in locally high stressing of both the membrane
and the seat frame. It is an object of this invention,
therefore, to provide web attachment structure which provides
30 for a continuous attachment of the web to the frame to
1 thereby take full advantage of the uniform web load
carrying characteristics.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The vehicle eye assembly of this invention comprises
5 a main structural frame and a pro tensioned losd-~upporting
web which it mounted at it ends on the frame and spreads
the loads of the occupant over a larger urea, thereby
allowing for thinner seats without causing local pressure
pollinate. The vehicle seat frame has cushion support portion
10 which includes a pair ox wide rail having upright webs
and upper flanges which extend outwardly from each other and
may or may not hove down-turned exten~ione at their outer
edges. A load-carrying membrane it mounted on ant extends
between the wide rail, the mounting being facilitated by
15 the J-clip mounting member of this invention.
The mounting members are formed of a structural plafftlc
strip which it shaped Jo swat it it return bent upon itself
in cross section, thereby resembling a "J" shape in
cross section. The mounting strip are secured by a con-
20 tenuous connection or team, such as by sewing, sonic welding dielectric bond, chemical bonding, etc., to the membrane.
The open ends of the Taipei are then hooked over the main
frame flanges Jo a to maintain the restretched condition
of the membrane. The result it a untying of the membrane
25 In which it is uniformly stretched BY that all portions of
it will provide knifer resistance to seating loads. This
avoid focalized try areas in both the membrane and the
frame to thereby enable the membrane and the frame to be
constructed of a mln~mum mount of material which will pro-
30 Wide the desired seating comfort without adding to the c06tand weight of the vehicle.
Further objects, feature, and advantages of this
invention will become apparent from a consideration of
the following specification when taken in connection with
35 the appended clams and the accompanying drawing in which:
2 I
1 Pig. l it a perspective view of the seat assembly
ox this invention with me part broken away and other
parts shown in section for the purpose of clarity;
Fig. 2 is a fragmentary enlarged 8 sectional view
5 ox a portion of the seat assembly shown in Fig. l;
Fig. 3 it a fra~ntary par~pecti~e view illustrating
on ox of the J-clip mounting mimer of this invention
and the attachment thereof to a loud bearing membrane; and
Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are vie like Fig. 3 showing
I mud worms of toe clip and morn assembly shown
in Fig. 3.
With reference to the drawing, the teat assembly
of whir invention, indicated generally at 10, it illustrated
in Fig. 1 a having a ennui portion 11 and a beck portion
15 12~ The seat assembly 10 includes a main structural frame
13 having side rail 14, only one of which is shown, and
a front fall 16. The assembly Allah includes a load support-
in web or sheet 18 which extends between the rails 14 and
support the seating load of the occupant.
The web 18 can take many form. For ample it
can be of the form shown and described in co-pending
Appalachian Serial No. 435,801 , which description it
incorporated herein by reference, conQis~ing e~8en~ially
of a sheet or membrane of woven flubber material having
25 filament exterlding both parallel to the side rails 14 and
Alde-to-side between the rails 14. Alto the web 18 can
take Reform illustrated in ~ig8. 1 and which illustrate
the web 18 as consisting of a pair of woven fibrous membranes
20, like the ~mbrane that it illustrated and described in
30 the above referenced co pending application, which are
connected by seam 21 and shaped to provide space 22 which
enclose elongated ribs or pillows 23 of foam material which
are elongated in a direction fore and aft of the seat 10 and
extend in directions generally parallel to the wide rails 14.
35 The pillows 23 are spaced apart on directions tran~Yer~ely
,.
1 of the side rail 14 and function to enhance the ability of
thy web 18 to impart contort to users of the seat 10.
The web 18 ho a pair ox Ed portion 24, only on
of which I shown, that constitute, in the illustrated
I 0mbstim~nt of ho invention, end portion of the lower
membrane 24. The end portion 24 ore identical and are indent-
Lilly mounted on the wide rails 14 and, for this reason, only
one end portion 24 it illustrated in the drawing end de~eribed
herein, As shown in Fig. 2, each side rail 14 ha an upright
lo web 26 end upper end lower flanges 28 and 30, respectively,
which extend in horizontally opposite directions from the web
26. The lower flange 30 it supported in a frame symbol 32
that it secured to the floor of the vehicle in which the
goat 10 it mounted. The upper flange 28 extend outwardly
15 with respect to the sea cushion portion 11 Jo thereby
extend the load supporting ~urf~ee oil the web 18 in
horizontal director A shown in Figs. l, 2 and 3, a
continuous strip 34 ox plastic material it secured by a
continuous Em 36 to the end portion 24 of the web 18. The
20 team 36 can be formed by sewing, welding, bonding, or the
like, to injure a continuous attachment of the J-strip 34
to the membrane end portion 24 over the full length of the
web 18 in a direction fore sod aft of the seat 10.
The trip 34 it referred to "J-strip" Buick
25 it it of a return bent upon itself configuration 80 that it
ho a pelf of generally parallel legs 38 and 40 end when
these legs are positioned 80 that they erg upright, the crow
sectional shape of the strip 34 resembles the letter "J".
The leg 38 it longer than the leg 40 and it secured by the
30 em 36 to the web end portion 24, the leg 40 being positioned
below thy leg 38 a each end of the web 18.
The web 18 it stretched, during assembly of the web
18 with the frame rail 14, 80 I induce tension of a
predeeexmlned magnitude into the filaments of the membrane
35 20 which extend ~ide-to-Ride. Thy unhung troupe 34 are
~L2~'7~3
1 then hooked over thy side roil flange 28 Ann in
Film, 2 to curly mount Lowe web 18 on ho rails 14 in
position in which two prostration of ho web 18 it
innuendo .
A form body 42 of eonven~ion~l buck set ho it
molded in pluck on the rod 13 80 1111 to enclo~ thy we
18 Ed I 14. In thy ill~r~t~d eta 10, thy
body 42 include ~ldQ bolters 43 ox foam neutral that
el~COD~ 8 two mounting trips 34 and thy age 213,
10. Encapsul~tiorl take place with the web 18 in I substantially
horizontal condition in which it will support no
yi~aldably resist downwardly directed setting lords applied
to thy sty cushion 11. Thy foam in the body 42 function
to lock all of the flubber or film to in the web 18 Tucker
15 to provide or the desired distribution of eating loads
throughout thy web 18 end volleyed Roy of try concentration.
pull Lao function to ~hrlnk thy web 20 to furrier
ionic. ~erl3ion irk the web 18 end slur it bullet to
com:Eort~bly Wright settling loads. ho form in the body 42
20 con be of my suitable foam material such pa 8 urethane
form of thy typo d commonly in vehicle seat.
Fig. 4, 5 arid 6 illustrate muddled form of the
a idly ox thy web 18 with ho lye rail 14. The
25 ~odlmRnts shown in Fix. 4 and 6 art intended for U81B in
eye tractor en~rorl~Qnt~ in which outlawry structural part
ox the teat interfere with the contralto of the mourlting
troupe 34.
In the embodiment illustrated in Fog. 4, thy
it r~difixd punting trollop aye ill formed with a notch 44
which tend through the base portion 46 of the trip
which connects the legs 40 and 38. By vlrcue of thy notch
44, so structural element it the teat 10 con be
locked ~d~cerle the Ed portion 24 of the web 18. In thy
35 ~bod~nt of the inve~ion illustrated in Fix. S, both thy
I
1 leg 38 ail the leg 40 are continuous, but a notch 48 it
ford in the trip 34b which extend through the base
potion 46.
In the embodimerlt of thy invention Shari in
5 Fig. 6, the side r~11 flange 28 it provided with a downward
extension 28~ and the trip 34 ill hooked over the flange
extension aye, the end result being the tame a in ache
embodiment illu~tr~lted in Fig. 2.
From the above Dakotan, it it seen that this
lO.inventiorl provide a vehicle teat assembly 10 in which a foam
encapsulated web 18, which can Allah be alternatively
described as a membrane, sheet, or the like, cooperate with
the punting strip 34, aye and 34b end the side rail
flange 28 to provide or mooting of the web 18 on the
15 seat from 80 as to effectively resist seating load.
A sea with improved comfort corrector gigs it thus achieved .
